# The Unusual Mesophases and Properties Exhibited by a Family of Glycosteroids

## TL;DR

This paper studies the unique mesophases formed by a family of glycosteroid-based Janus amphiphiles and their temperature-dependent behavior.

## Contribution

The study reveals unusual phase sequences and mesophase behavior in glycosteroids due to supercooling effects.

## Key findings

- Some homologues exhibited lamellar, columnar, and bicontinuous mesophases on heating.
- Phase sequences differed when cooling from the amorphous liquid state.
- Supercooling was identified as a key factor in the observed phase behavior.

## Abstract

In this article we describe research on the synthesis and characterization of a family of “Janus” amphiphiles composed of disaccharide head groups and alkaloid units joined together via a methylene linker, and bearing a lateral aliphatic chain of varying length. The condensed phases formed by self‐organization of the products as a function of temperature were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, thermal polarized light microscopy, and small angle X‐ray scattering, allied with computational modelling and simulations. Structural studies on heating specimens from the solid showed that some homologues exhibited lamellar, columnar and bicontinuous mesophases, whereas the same homologues revealed different phase sequences on cooling from the amorphous liquid. We explore these unusual results, which are revealed via supercooling.

This article describes the synthesis and characterization of a family of “Janus” amphiphiles comprising disaccharide head groups and alkaloid units joined via a methylene linker, and bearing a lateral aliphatic chain. The condensed phases formed by self‐organization of the products as a function of temperature were characterized by DSC, thermal POM, and SAXS, allied with computational modelling and simulations.